Department for Transport

M20: Repairs and Maintenance

lord carlile of berriew: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many days of work were carried out on the roadworks on the M20 between London and Folkestone in August 2018; and how many daysdid contractors work during August 2018 on that stretch of motorway.

baroness sugg: For Highways England’s major projects currently being carried out on the M20 between London and Folkestone, the information is provided in the table below: Project DescriptionNumber of days in August when live work was being carried outTotal workforce hoursM20 junction 3-5 smart motorway2427,401M20 junction 10a improvements2232,500M20 junction 8-9 Temporary Solution2510,707

Motorways: Repairs and Maintenance

lord carlile of berriew: To ask Her Majesty's Government what percentage of planned motorway roadwork projects in the UK are completed (1) on time, and(2) within budget.

baroness sugg: The management of motorways in the UK is a devolved matter. In England, to date, Highways England has completed 23 major schemes in the current Road Investment Strategy. Nearly four-fifths (78 per cent) of projects were completed either ahead of schedule or on time. The remainder opened later than originally planned for a number of reasons, including unexpected contaminated ground and archaeological finds, and the addition of maintenance work to reduce the need for future roadworks. Of the 23 completed schemes, nearly four-fifths (78 per cent) were within budget.

Department for Transport: Families

baroness eaton: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many Department for Transport policies have been assessed against theFamilyTest; and whether they will publish any suchassessments.

baroness sugg: The government is committed to supporting families. To achieve this, in 2014 we introduced the Family Test, which aims to ensure that impacts on family relationships and functioning are recognised early on during the process of policy development and help inform the policy decisions made by Ministers. There is no requirement for departments to publish the results of assessments made under the Family Test.

Roads: Maps

lord lea of crondall: To ask Her Majesty's Government what responsibility, if any, they have for ensuring that comprehensive road maps of cities are available including details of no right turns.

baroness sugg: Local authorities are responsible for managing their road networks, including implementing measures such as right turn bans. It is for them to ensure these and other traffic restrictions are properly signed on-street so that drivers are aware of them. Drivers are responsible for ensuring they follow the rules of the road and are not in breach of any restrictions. The Department for Transport has no responsibility for producing road mapping. Commercial mapping companies are responsible for ensuring the maps they produce are accurate.

Roads

lord patten: To ask Her Majesty's Government what is their assessment of the road network between Cambridge, Milton Keynes and Oxford.

baroness sugg: Assessment of road connections between Oxford and Cambridge is contained within the published Oxford to Cambridge Expressway Stage 3 Report. Accordingly, the Government has committed to improving the road links within this corridor, and to filling the missing link in the Strategic Road Network between Oxford and Cambridge. It has announced the central corridor as the preferred choice. The Department is now working out detailed route options within the corridor, and is currently on track to have it open to traffic by 2030 as planned.

Motor Vehicles: Excise Duties

lord campbell-savours: To ask Her Majesty's Government what considerationthey are giving to the return of the windscreen tax disc.

baroness sugg: The Government has no plans to re-introduce the tax disc. The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) and other enforcement agencies use the DVLA’s electronic vehicle information to confirm that vehicle excise duty has been paid.

Motor Vehicles: Excise Duties

lord campbell-savours: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether any reconsideration of roadfund tax disc compliance policyis taking place following publication of the most recent DVLA annual report.

baroness sugg: More than 98 per cent of vehicles on the road are currently taxed and as the annual report shows the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) continues to collect approximately £6 billion in tax each year. This shows the overwhelming majority of motorists tax their vehicles on time. The DVLA has a comprehensive package of measures to tackle vehicle excise duty evasion. These are kept under constant review and range from reminder letters, penalties and court prosecutions through to the use of Automatic Number Plate Recognition cameras, wheel clamping and the removal of unlicensed vehicles.

Motorways: Accidents

lord storey: To ask Her Majesty's Government what was the total number of motorway accidents in the years (1) 2014–15, (2) 2015–16, and (3) 2016–17; and how many of those accidents involved Heavy Goods Vehicles.

baroness sugg: The number of reported road accidents involving personal injury on motorways, and the number of these involving Heavy Goods Vehicles (HGVs) in Great Britain for the years 2014 to 2016 are provided in the table below. An extra category (accidents involving goods vehicles with unknown weight) has also been included for context. Some of the unknown weight goods vehicles will be HGVs. YearRoad accidents on motorwaysRoad accidents on motorways involving HGVsRoad accidents involving goods vehicle with unknown weight20145,6301,3122320155,5501,3057020165,4051,076190Source: DfT STATS19 Reported road accident statistics are collected on a calendar year basis.Statistics for the year 2017 will be published on Thursday 27th September 2018.

Attorney General

Human Trafficking: Convictions

lord hylton: To ask Her Majesty's Government what information, if any, they have received from North Africa, the Middle East and Europe about successful prosecutions for offences connected with trafficking in persons; and if none, whether they will call for better intelligence sharing about such crimes.

lord keen of elie: There is no information held about successful prosecutions for offences connected with trafficking in persons in North Africa, the Middle East and Europe.However, the UK shares relevant information on organised immigration crime (OIC) with partners in source, transit and destination countries for illegal migration. This takes place both on a bilateral basis and through the European Migrant Smuggling Centre within Europol.Through the multi-agency Organised Immigration Crime Taskforce, the government is improving the intelligence picture around OIC, modern slavery and human trafficking, undermining the criminal business model and building the capacity of upstream law enforcement partners to tackle the threat.The police transformation program includes an analytical team, the Joint Slavery and Trafficking Analysis Centre (JSTAC) which is building and developing the strategic intelligence picture by improving data collection and focused analysis of the information gathered. To aid in international dissemination of information, a seconded national expert to Europol to coordinate activity between UK law enforcement and European counterparts during cross-border investigations has been implemented.

Home Office

Human Trafficking

baroness doocey: To ask Her Majesty's Government why they have issued instructions for officials to delay consideration of discretionary leave for victims of trafficking until they consider the Court of Appeal judgment in PK(Ghana) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2018] EWCA Civ 98.

baroness williams of trafford: Following the judgment in PK(Ghana) officials were instructed to temporarily defer most decisions on whether to grant discretionary leave to remain to trafficking victims. This was to enable new guidance to be prepared that would take account of the findings of the Court.Grants of discretionary leave continued to be made if it was found that a grant was necessary to enable a trafficking victim to seek compensation through the courts or to assist the police with a criminal investigation or prosecution. Victims also continued to be granted leave if they qualified for refugee status or under other provisions in the Immigration Rules.The new guidance was published on 8 August 2018 and normal decision making has therefore resumed. The guidance is available on the GOV.UK web-pages at:https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/732594/dl-for-victims-of-modern-slavery-v1.0ext.pdf



DL - Victims of Modern Slavery 
(PDF Document, 443.88 KB)

Offences against Children: Internet

baroness howe of idlicote: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer byBaroness Williams of Trafford on 25 July (HL9483), on how many occasions within the last two years the National Crime Agencyhas reported to another jurisdiction that a website hosted in that jurisdiction, accessed from within the UK, is showing non-photographic child sex abuse images; and on how many occasions that material has been removed from the particular website.

baroness williams of trafford: When the NCA receives notification or referrals relating to Manga or other drawn images, or computer generated imagery (CGI) material interpreted as representing a child or children involved in sexual activity, and where the material is deemed as illegal in the UK, it is investigated by law enforcement, which may include preservation orders resulting in the material being removed. If the site is outside the UK, it is reported by the NCA to the host country via Interpol channels to take appropriate action.The NCA does not keep statistics of action taken against websites. Action to secure the takedown of websites, where the content is wholly illegal, will if the website is hosted in the UK, be progressed by the Internet Watch Foundation. The IWF Annual Report includes statistics relating to website takedown. The NCA takes action against administrators of websites hosting illegal material and individuals uploading and accessing illegal content. Data on the number of websites taken down in other countries will be available from similar organisations to the Internet Watch Foundation in other countries.

Northern Ireland Office

Brexit: Northern Ireland

lord roberts of llandudno: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that any Brexit agreement will be acceptable to the population of Northern Ireland and to ensure that the Good Friday agreement will be maintained.

lord duncan of springbank: The UK Government is determined to deliver the best deal for the whole of our United Kingdom, including Northern Ireland. We have placed the upholding of the Belfast Agreement at the heart of our approach to the negotiations with the EU, and this is reflected in the December Joint Report text. Our White Paper proposes a comprehensive future partnership which would meet our commitments, including the avoidance of a hard border between Northern Ireland and Ireland and would maintain the constitutional and economic integrity of the UK.

Abortion: Northern Ireland

lord morrow: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the answer byLord Duncan of Springbank on 18 July (HL Deb, Col 1259), when they intend to providea written reply about abortion and abortion services in Northern Ireland.

lord duncan of springbank: I have recently written to the Noble Lord on these matters.

Treasury

Inheritance Tax: Families

lord lexden: To ask Her Majesty's Government what consideration they have given to deferring the date that inheritance tax becomes payable on the home of two blood-related joint owners until the death of the second of those two persons.

lord bates: All individuals benefit from a £325,000 tax free threshold for inheritance tax. On certain assets, inheritance tax can be paid in instalments over a ten-year period. This includes situations where the estate contains a house, provided that the house remains unsold.

Holyhead Port: Large Goods Vehicles

lord roberts of llandudno: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of whether lorries at the Port of Holyhead will spend longer being checked following the UK’s withdrawal from the EU; and how much extra land might be needed to accommodate additional waiting lorries.

lord bates: The Government recognises the important contribution that Welsh ports make to the economy, and intends to ensure that traffic continues to flow freely at all UK ports and airports, including at those such as Holyhead, Fishguard and Pembroke Dock. The Government’s White Paper on the UK’s Future Relationship with the European Union set out our proposal of a new Facilitated Customs Arrangement which would avoid any new routine customs checks and controls for UK-EU trade. However, it is our duty as a responsible Government to prepare for all potential outcomes. HMRC and other departments working with the Border Delivery Group are engaging port users and operators, domestically and at key EU ports, to ensure locations are operationally ready to meet the requirements of future customs arrangements with the EU.

Money Laundering: EU Action

lord taylor of warwick: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of whether the UK will continue to adopt new EU legislation on anti-money laundering in the event of a no-deal Brexit.

lord bates: The Sanctions and Anti-Money Laundering Act 2018 provides the Government with the powers to amend and update anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing (AML/CTF) regulations post -Brexit. The Government will use these powers to continue implementing the international AML/CTF standards set by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), and to continue strengthening the UK’s AML/CTF regime.

Stamp Duty Land Tax

lord truscott: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they have any plans to reform Stamp Duty Land Tax.

lord bates: The Government reformed Stamp Duty Land Tax on residential properties at Autumn Statement 2014, cutting the tax for 98% of people who pay it, unless they are purchasing additional property. The Government’s priority is to support first-time buyers. At Autumn Budget 2017, the Government removed Stamp Duty Land Tax for all first-time buyers purchasing properties up to £300,000 with the relief also extending to purchases worth up to £500,000. Since introduction, these changes have benefitted 121,500 households with one million households expected to benefit over the next five years. The Government keeps all taxes under review as part of the Budget process.

Charitable Donations: Tax Allowances

lord vinson: To ask Her Majesty's Government what is the annual cost to the Exchequer of the tax foregone due to tax relief on charitable donations (1) in the last year, and (2) over the last five years.

lord vinson: To ask Her Majesty's Government what is the annual cost to the Exchequer of the tax foregone due to tax relief on charity investment income (1) in the last year, and (2) over the last five years; and what is the breakdown of the total cost over the last five years per taxpayer, per year.

lord bates: Tax relief is available on donations to charity by individuals and organisations, and to charities for their activities, including investment income.Information about tax relief on charities’ investment income, and on charitable donations by organisations is not readily available.Estimates for tax reliefs on charitable donations by individuals are published in “UK charity tax relief statistics”. The table below is an extract from the latest edition.Extract from Table 2: Estimates for UK charities tax reliefs. Updated June 2018. Restricted to those reliefs for which accurate figures can be estimated £mReliefs paid to charitiesReliefs paid to individualsTax YearGift AidGift Aid Small Donations SchemeInheritance TaxPayroll GivingGifts of shares and propertyHigher Rate Relief on Gift Aid2013-1410601066040604102014-1512102070040604802015-1613003080040705002016-1712803084040704902017-181270308604070490

Treasury: Families

baroness eaton: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many HM Treasury policieshave been assessed against theFamilyTest; and whether they will publishany such assessments.

lord bates: The government is committed to supporting families. To achieve this, in 2014 we introduced the Family Test, which aims to ensure that impacts on family relationships and functioning are recognised early on during the process of policy development and help inform the policy decisions made by Minsters. There is no requirement for departments to publish the results of assessments made under the Family Test.

Air Passenger Duty: Northern Ireland

lord kilclooney: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether air passenger duty is applied to flights from Northern Ireland to other parts of the UK; and if so, what plans they have to introduce a rate of 0 per cent.

lord bates: Flights between regions of the UK are subject to the short haul rate of Air Passenger Duty. Under State aid rules, it is not possible to vary tax rates for domestic flights only. The government has made a number of reforms to reduce the effect of APD on consumers, including exempting children on economy flights. This could save a family of four £52 on a roundtrip within the UK. Like all taxes, Air Passenger Duty remains under review. In June we closed a call for evidence on ‘VAT, Air Passenger Duty and tourism in Northern Ireland’. It is the government’s intention to report at Budget.

Construction: VAT

the earl of lytton: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure prompt repayment of VAT to small building contractors where zero-rated supplies are made in connection with constructing new housing; andwhether they will ensure that HMRC adheres to the 30 day target for refunds unless it has first provided compelling reasons for not doing so.

lord bates: On receipt of a VAT claim return, HMRC will issue an automated refund within 6 working days for the vast majority of customers, including most small business contractors. Where there is an exception to this automated process and the customer has provided all the required information, HMRC will strive to adhere to the 30 day turnaround. Current performance level is over 95% of refunds issued within 30 days.

Cryptocurrencies

lord taylor of warwick: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have madeof reports that the value of crypto-currencies in theUnited Statesis falling, andof the potential effectsthatsuch a decline might have on the UK blockchain industry.

lord bates: The Government has not made a formal assessment of any potential implications of recent changes in the value of cryptocurrencies. However, the Government continues to monitor developments in the cryptocurrency market.The Chancellor of the Exchequer launched the Cryptoassets Taskforce in March, consisting of HM Treasury, the Bank of England and the Financial Conduct Authority. The Taskforce is considering the risks and potential benefits of cryptoassets and other applications of distributed ledger technology in financial services, as well as assessing what, if any, regulation is required in response. The Taskforce will publish a report in the Autumn.

Debts

lord taylor of warwick: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment theyhave made ofrising levels of debt among lower income households in recent years; and what plans, if any, they have made to address this issue.

lord bates: Household debt as a proportion of income is down significantly from its pre-crisis peak, from 160% in Q1 2008 to 140% in Q1 2018.The government is working to support those on lower incomes by putting in measures to improve living standards and making it easier to access help with financial matters. The National Living Wage has increased the earnings of the lowest paid full time worker by over £2,000 since 2016, and real household disposable income per person is now 3.4% higher than the start of 2010.The government is also setting up a new Single Financial Guidance Body, which will provide consumers with a single point of contact for help with all financial matters, and have a statutory responsibility to improve the public’s financial capability.However, we recognise that, despite this action, some people can fall into problem debt. That is why the government-commissioned Money Advice Service is spending over £56m to provide debt advice to at least 530,000 people this year, and we are introducing a breathing space scheme to provide people with unmanageable debt protection from creditor action so they can seek debt advice and enter into a sustainable debt solution.

Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport

Gambling: Internet

lord chadlington: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Ashton of Hyde on 24 July (HL9368), what plans they have to make a specific assessment of loneliness in relation to online gambling.

lord ashton of hyde: In January the Prime Minister announced a significant programme of cross-government work on loneliness including the world's first Minister responsible for tackling loneliness, my Hon Friend the Minister for Sport and Civil Society. This work includes publishing its strategy for tackling loneliness in England by the end of 2018 and developing the evidence base on loneliness which includes looking at wide and interconnected aspects, including digital, surrounding loneliness. The Minister is also responsible for gambling and lotteries policy and in May, the Government published its response to the Consultation on Proposals for Changes to Gaming Machines and Social Responsibility Measures. This included a range of measures designed to increase player protections around online gambling.

Gambling: Advertising

lord chadlington: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of Australia’s ban of online platforms advertising gambling during live sports events broadcast on the internet between 5am and 8.30pm; and what assessment they have made of the case for implementing a similar ban in the UK.

lord ashton of hyde: The Government considered advertising as part of our Review of Gaming Machines and Social Responsibility and published our response on 17 May. The Review looked at the existing protections around gambling advertising across all media and set out a package of initiatives to strengthen them further, including tougher guidance from the Committees of Advertising Practice (CAP) on protecting vulnerable people and children and young people. We do not propose to bring forward legislation on gambling advertising but we will keep these issues under review. This will include examining any new evidence emerging from research and from initiatives in other countries.

Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport: Families

baroness eaton: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport policieshave been assessed against theFamilyTest; and whether they will publish any suchassessments.

lord ashton of hyde: The government is committed to supporting families. To achieve this, in 2014 we introduced the Family Test, which aims to ensure that impacts on family relationships and functioning are recognised early on during the process of policy development and help inform the policy decisions made by Minsters. There is no requirement for departments to publish the results of assessments made under the Family Test.

Merchant Navy Day: Flags

lord west of spithead: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to theWritten Answerby Baroness Neville-Rolfe on 26 April 2016 (HL7727), whether there have been any further discussions with the Lord Chamberlain’s office regarding the additionof flying the Red Ensign on Merchant Navy Day to the list of officially recognised flag days.

lord ashton of hyde: There are currently 21 designated days for flying the Union Flag on Government Buildings. These days have been set to mark special occasions by command of Her Majesty the Queen and on the advice of Government. As you suggest, any changes or additions are discussed with the Lord Chamberlain's Office. All other flag flying is deregulated and any organisation may fly any flag at any time, so long as they have the necessary planning permission. Therefore, organisations and individuals may fly the Red Ensign on Merchant Navy day if they wish.

Emmeline Pankhurst

lord lucas: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they have agreed to the proposed relocation of the statue of Emmeline Pankhurst fromVictoria Tower Gardens to Regent’s University London;if so, why; and if not, what steps they are taking to ensure that it stays where it is.

lord ashton of hyde: No final decision has been made by the Government on whether to grant permission for the relocation of the existing grade II listed statue currently sited on Victoria Tower Gardens. All views will be carefully considered. It is also important to note that these proposals will require planning permission. The final decision on this rests with Westminster City Council as the local planning authority.

Educational Broadcasting: English Language

lord roberts of llandudno: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they plan to discuss with the BBC the possibility of increasing the number of English language tuition programmes it broadcasts.

lord ashton of hyde: The BBC is operationally and editorially independent of government. The provision of BBC services, including English language tuition programmes, is a matter for the BBC.